Pedro León Zapata

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Zapata in his studio

Pedro León Zapata (b. La Grita, Táchira, February 27th, 1929) is a prominent Venezuelan artist, humorist and cartoonist.

In 1945 he entered the "Escuela de Artes Plásticas de Caracas" but in 1947 he abandons the school to join the foundation of the "Taller La Barraca de Maripérez" where he will exhibit his first works. In the same year travels to Mexico to learn the techniques of the great muralist Diego Rivera and Jose Clemente Orozco and studies at the Instituto Politécnico Nacional, at the "Escuela de La Esmeralda" and the workshop of Siqueiros. After eleven years he returns to Venezuela and becomes Professor of Drawing at the Architecture School of the Central University of Venezuela and at the "Escuela de Artes Plásticas Cristóbal Rojas". In 1959 he began to draw caricatures for newspapers, first for the newspapers "Dominguito" and later, in 1965, creates a column in the newspaper El Nacional entitled "Zapatazos" which continues until today to be one of the most important places for critical commentary of the social and political situation in Venezuela. In 1968, the first collection of his caricatures was compiled under the title "Las Elecciones de Zapata". His work has a great range from illustration of books and magazines to writing plays and hosting a radio show in Caracas with Orlando Urdaneta and later on with another well-known Venezuelan comedian Laureano Márquez.

His paintings have been exhibited in many solo expositions, among them "Todo el museo para Zapata" at the Museum of Contemporary Art Sofía Imber in 1975. He won the "Premio Nacional de Artes Plásticas" in 1980 and the "Premio Nacional de Periodismo" in 1967.

Caricature subject to criticism by Hugo Chávez. It suggests that the sword, representing a militaristic government, speaks and tells civil society to behave in accordance to military orders.

In 1992 he was in charge of designing the image of the Latin American Film Festivals at Biarritz, France and Trieste in Italy and in 1999 he finished an enormous mural of 1,500m² entitled "Conductores de Venezuela" that adorns the northern edge of the Central University of Venezuela, next to the Francisco Fajardo Highway, and represents historical Venezuelan leaders driving all kinds of vehicles.

One of Zapata's daily cartoons on the newspaper El Nacional became the subject of heavy criticism in Aló Presidente, the weekly TV program of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, in the year 2000 because of Zapata's view on the transformation of Venezuelan civil society into a military society caused by some of the policies implemented by Chávez at the time, like appointing in government offices numerous ex-military officers and an education plan incorporating military training in all highschools of the country[1]. Chávez demanded an explanation for the meaning of the cartoon and suggested that Zapata had been paid to draw it. Zapata responded by drawing another cartoon which asked Chávez, "Hugo Rafael, how much were you paid to promote the cartoon?" since the newspaper sales and the profile of Zapata increased because of the controversy.

In February of 2005, he received an honorary PhD from the Central University of Venezuela. The ceremony was hosted by Laureano Márquez, Claudio Nazoa, Graterolacho, Oscar Yánez, Cayito Aponte, Rubén Monasterios and Otrova Gomas.[2]

[edit] Works

"Zapata contra Pinochet" (Caracas: Ediciones Barricada 1980)
"Caracas: Monte y Culebra" (Caracas : Pomaire 1987) ISBN 9802900214
(with Salvador Garmendia) "Crónicas Sádicas" (Caracas : Pomaire1990) ISBN 980290046X
"Dressed and undressed : painted drawings by Pedro León Zapata" (Washington, D.C. : Art Museum of the Americas, Organization of American States 1997) ISBN 9802721891
"¡Zapata...Firme!: un país en blanco y negro" (Caracas: Ediciones EG 2001) ISBN 9806386248

[edit] Quotations

“

I want to make myself appear intelligent, now that it is prohibited

”

“

No one is more happy or optimistic than a pessimist when what he believes is going to happen, happens. More happiness than this is impossible to conceive".

”